Disclaimer: No rights to them, no profit, and still, I write on.

Without You – Chapter 17

Starvation.

There was no other way to put it, no scientific words Brennan felt that she needed to use. All four sets of remains had the same place and cause of death. There was no other way that could put it better with the evidence that she possessed than in that one word. And it was a hell of a lot simpler and over quicker than going through the details.

Closing the file of the fourth small boy, Brennan once again looked out over the platform. Each was male, and each was between four and eight years old. Though there was no tissue left on the bones to prove that the boys were sexually assaulted, the confession Booth dragged out of Mattia proved that.

It had been hard, this time, to fully remove herself from the boys. Having met the killer, the molester, Brennan could see his face, see each of his terrible actions in play. And each time, having only glanced at the pictures of Skyler, Jacob, Matthew and Nathan, Brennan always imagined the victim as Parker.

Every time she tried to shake the image from her head and think about other things, but every time the image came back. Parker had so nearly escaped such a traumatizing event, such a scarring experience. If Booth hadn't gotten there when he did…

But he had. Parker was safe, Mattia was locked up.

It all seemed to be coming to a close.

"Dr. Brennan!"

Oh dear God. No. She'd recognize the annoying, raspy voice anywhere. Agent Terrence.

Brennan turned with a smile on her face. "Agent Terrence."

"Can we speak in your office?"

"Of course," Brennan answered, leading the way. Once they were inside, Terrence walked towards Brennan, and came uncomfortably near, so close that she could taste the cigarette smoke on his breath. So in her personal space.

"Dr. Brennan, I've seen the way you've been looking at me recently…"

Classic. She really should have been expecting something like this from day one. Couldn't anyone think of something new to try?

Terrence went on to say other things about their natural attraction to one another, and how she couldn't deny her intense sexual fantasies she'd been having about him. Brennan would have laughed, but she wasn't listening, because Booth was standing in the doorway to her office, to which Terrence's back was turned.

Brennan was reading Booth's lips that told her to let Terrence go too far, as he pointed to his handcuffs. Brennan couldn't help but smile. Booth was taking his job back.

Agent Terrence, however, thought that the smile was for him. "Yeah, I knew I was right. Come on, Tempe. Give it to me."

Booth was slowly stepping closer to the agent's back, eyes locked with Brennan's. Behind him, Brennan saw three other agents appear, and knew there must be a legitimate reason to put the agent in cuffs.

How convenient.

Terrence reached for her, but never met his mark, because his arms were seized by the agent behind him. He uttered curses as his face was pushed into the glass table of Brennan's office as Booth handcuffed him.

"Special Agent Sean Terrence, you are under arrest for suspected involvement in drug trafficking. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be used against you in the court of law. Blah, blah, blah, attorney, blah, blah, blah, you know the drill." Booth gave Terrence a clap on the shoulder as he handed him off to the other agents.

Once they had cleared out, Booth and Brennan stood in the middle of her office, dead still until she spoke. "He went pretty quietly," Brennan observed, having never heard anything as to why any of that just happened. Not that she was complaining.

"He was in on the kidnapping of Angela and re-kidnapping of Parker. Mattia gave up his name and Cullen gave me the honor of coming down here to arrest him. He recommended I do it in front of you."

"Wait…Terrence was in on the whole thing?" Brennan clarified.

"Yup. He was bribed into using his 'authority' here to distract you guys? What a failure to get arrested for, eh?" Booth winked, and Brennan gave a small laugh.

So true. Terrence had been so ineffective that no one even noticed him, much less suspected him of trying anything.

"So…did you have any suspicions about the kind, amiable and wonderfully smelling Agent Terrence, Dr. Brennan?"

"I didn't like him."

"Word on the street is that he was your only liaison to the Bureau. That's a shame."

"Yes," Brennan played along. "I'm glad he's gone, though. The FBI has always been annoying in someway or another, anyway."

"Ah, but how are you going to get those cases from the FBI that you love to solve so much, Dr. Brennan? Surely, there's some way."

"Well, you see, there was this agent a few months ago. He used to come in all the time. Annoying as hell."

Booth took a step closer to her. "Was he handsome?"

Brennan shrugged with a smile. "Some might say that."

"Whatever happened to this agent of yours, Dr. Brennan?"

She sighed. "Well, you see, I told him to go to Hell."

Booth held her gaze. "Dr. Brennan, I think that this agent might remember not being completely fair to you either."

"He thinks what he likes. I happen to disagree."

"He wanted you to know…that he accepts whatever you choose to give, and that's up to you." Booth turned, and began to leave, to let her think about it.

Calling after him before he reached her office door, Brennan took the leap. "I give everything. I just want to be forgiven."

Booth only turned halfway around. "Brennan, I forgave you the day you turned your back on me." He now turned fully. "One word from you telling me you want me gone, and I'll go, Brennan. It's up to you. Should I stay? Or should I leave?"

Brennan could do nothing but shake her head no, and somehow managed to whisper it. "Please, Booth, stay."

They didn't break eye contact for what seemed like hours. Booth extended his hand. "Partners?"

They shook. "Wouldn't have it any other way," Brennan said with a smile that reached all the way to her eyes.

After a few minutes, Booth took the file on the four boys, assuring Brennan that he could handle it. He began to walk away, but Brennan remembered one last thing.

"Booth!"

He spun on his heel, and Brennan jogged from her office to stand in front of him. "What?" he asked.

"Partners. Under one condition." She paused, thinking it through one last time. He waited. "Call me Bones."

"What? I thought you – "

"Just do it."

He chuckled the tiniest bit, pointing at her. "I knew you secretly liked that nickname."

Brennan shrugged.

"Okay, Bones. Partners."

Brennan couldn't wipe the goofy grin off her face at just hearing him say it.

-

AN: One more to go.